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319: Listening to Cheol Jiseon

As soon as I heard this story, I was momentarily stunned.

‘What on earth is this guy saying?’

I couldn’t make sense of Cheol Jiseon’s sudden outburst, the words he spat out mid-meal.

He claimed that the Holy Being asked him for help to kill me.

Not just anyone, but Cheol Jiseon himself had just said that.

What a surprise that he was asking me to eat.

He even broke his promise with Mo Yonghui to come here.

Perhaps that was why the information caught me completely off guard.

And then came the question.

‘Why?’

It wasn’t that I was shocked he said it, but rather the fact that Cheol Jiseon was talking to me about it.

Truly, this was something I never saw coming.

‘Why?’

What on earth could be the reason?

I tried to recall any possible reasons, but nothing came to mind.

I knew that Jang Seonyeon had approached Cheol Jiseon with knowledge related to the past.

Thanks to the information Paewoocheol shared, I was already aware of that.

Even if Paewoocheol hadn’t mentioned it, I had expected it.

Was Jang Seonyeon trying to pull something on me?

Of course, it was a truth I could not escape if I remembered my previous life.

Otherwise, my goal at the time wasn’t me but the Sleeping Dragon.

While the Sleeping Dragon had barely reacted.

I was reacting so clearly to him, that was the difference.

It seemed that the incident preceding the Demonic Gate had been pulled forward just as I crossed the threshold of adulthood.

Although it was not certain whether Jang Seonyeon was planning to act as expected.

Seeing the current situation, I could predict that it wouldn’t be long before something happened.

And.

‘I’m rather hoping for that.’

Hoping that he waits for the right moment to stir things up.

For that to happen, it made sense for Jang Seonyeon to approach Cheol Jiseon.

The catalyst for everything.

Because Cheol Jiseon held the role of the Dagger.

It left me with a question.

Considering all of that.

The fact Cheol Jiseon was now telling me about Jang Seonyeon was a situation I simply couldn’t comprehend.

With those thoughts in mind, I asked.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because we’re friends…?”

The words that slipped from Cheol Jiseon’s mouth made me chuckle inwardly.

Friends?’

Did he really think calling me a friend made us friends?

.

….

..

Funny enough, we probably weren’t.

I wanted to keep him by my side out of necessity.

Did he really consider me a friend? Probably not.

“Yeah, friends, right. Sure.”

I popped a side dish into my mouth, chewed, and swallowed before looking back at Cheol Jiseon.

Somewhere in those trembling eyes, emotions I couldn’t quite understand flickered.

“But that doesn’t give you a reason to tell me now, right?”

“…”

“There must be a more solid reason for this. What is it?”

If Jang Seonyeon had approached Cheol Jiseon in the same way in my previous life.

There must have been a reason for Cheol Jiseon to side with her.

What had she offered him, I wondered.

But what was the reason for him to now abandon that in this life and tell me?

Was it truly just because he considered me a friend?

‘I’m not such a fool that I’d believe that blindly.’

There were too many issues with this story to accept it as is.

Cheol Jiseon’s eyes shook violently at my question.

I could tell he had struggled before saying that, but that didn’t mean I would just let it slide.

I pondered if I should press further into it when he suddenly said.

“…What you heard.”

Cheol Jiseon fixed his trembling eyes on me and continued.

“I’m not asking what it means, I’m asking why you’re telling me.”

“…Huh?”

It was a sudden turn of events.

But.

“Does that mean you already knew this story…?”

“…!”

It hit me out of nowhere.

I widened my eyes slightly at his words.

It was a mistake.

The information Cheol Jiseon mentioned was indeed my blunder.

However, the fact that he was bringing that up now made Cheol Jiseon seem a bit different.

‘What’s up with this guy?’

Had I underestimated him too much?

“How are you so sure of that?”

“I have no certainty. It’s just my fantasy. But…”

His trembling gaze began to calm down a bit.

“I feel like it might not be just a fantasy.”

“…”

“You hated the Holy Being. Almost to the point of disgust.”

“Why do you think that?”

“Anyone in Shinryong Temple would know that.”

It was true.

The story had spread across the temple within a few days after I went all chaotic and reckless around there, clashing with the Holy Being.

As a result, it was said that Jin Ryong felt inadequate toward the Holy Being and that jealousy was involved.

It was all such absurd nonsense. The only truth was this.

“Yeah, I hate that guy. But what’s it to you?”

“It’s no problem. It’s just a story that might aid your decision right now.” Choice, Cheol Jiseon said that.

“Just because I hate that guy doesn’t give you a reason to tell me this.”

“Seolbong.”

With the name that rolled off my tongue, he perked up his ears.

“Poison Phoenix… Sword Dance Hero, Sleeping Dragon, Sword Dragon…”

“What are you getting at…?”

“Even among the already loud Sword Sovereign’s successors… and the Two Dragons.”

Through the tickling fingers of Cheol Jiseon, there was an inexplicable chill.

“They are all your acquaintances. Even one person being linked to them would mean trouble. But the center of it all is you.”

I wasn’t sure how he got this information, but he was only stating what he saw.

What mattered was why he was saying this in front of me right now.

Cheol Jiseon’s eyes had stopped shaking at some point.

“All your rumors are frightening and fill people with fear. Not to mention your face.”

“Hey, why is my face coming up? Do you want to die?”

“…I’m sorry.”

I had been listening well, but that made me flare up for a moment.

“In that situation, surprisingly, your surroundings are filled with impressive people…”

“What’s your point? My rumors are trash, but the people around me are impressive, is that weird?”

“Yeah. A lot.”

“Well, what’s to be done…”

“Considering such remarkable individuals are surrounding you, yet only those kinds of rumors are circulating, it’s very odd.”

He tapped the desk repeatedly with his fingers, his gaze scrutinizing me in a way that felt disconnected.

“Conversely, the rumors about the Holy Being are suspiciously severe when linked to you.”

The more he spoke, the more different Cheol Jiseon became.

If he was cold, one might say that suits him well.

“It’s even a considerable reason…. The fact that you keep me around.”

Upon hearing Cheol Jiseon’s words, I crossed my arms and leaned back against my chair.

“Why’s that?”

“…It’s like this when you took the entrance exam and even now. You try to keep me next to you.”

Interesting.

I thought he was just some useless guy with power.

When did he start seeing all this?

“The Holy Being is cautious of you, asking me to help him kill you. And in that situation, you still try to keep me next to you. It seems I hold some value for you.”

“When did you start thinking like this? When did you start having such thoughts?”

“From the moment the Holy Being brought that up with me.”

So it hadn’t even been a few days.

Cheol Jiseon seemed to be smarter than I’d thought.

Given the situation, one could figure it out to some extent.

But thinking about it, not merely guessing but having certainty was something else entirely.

“You need me.”

Cheol Jiseon said.

“Right, I do need you.”

I didn’t deny Cheol Jiseon’s words.

There was no reason for me to do so.

I needed Cheol Jiseon.

More precisely, I needed the strength he possessed.

‘So.

With that in mind,

I asked Cheol Jiseon something else.

“Why are you telling me all this?”

“…Because you asked me to tell you about the conversation with the Holy Being.”

“Those predictions are an interesting story, but that doesn’t provide an explanation for why you’re telling me about the guy. There must be another reason for this.”

What Cheol Jiseon mentioned ultimately came down to the fact that my relationship with Jang Seonyeon wasn’t good, and that I needed Cheol Jiseon.

That alone didn’t justify his reason for telling me about Jang Seonyeon’s schemes.

I needed Cheol Jiseon just like Jang Seonyeon did.

That guy would have certainly been trying to get what he wanted from Cheol Jiseon.

It wouldn’t make sense for him to start turning towards me after hearing that.

I had no idea what he wanted, nor was I planning to give in even if I did.

After hearing my question, Cheol Jiseon made a thoughtful expression for a moment before beginning to speak.

“…The Holy Being didn’t feel right to me.”

“Didn’t feel right?”

“Yeah… it felt somewhat uncomfortable.”

Didn’t feel right?

That was the simplest and most emotional excuse one could offer.

If I had known Cheol Jiseon the way I had until just recently.

He might have made a choice like that.

But Cheol Jiseon I was looking at now seemed different.

“And.”

So, feeling like I prompted him to offer another reason, I asked again.

“…And?”

Cheol Jiseon’s trembling momentarily stopped.

For some reason, it was starting to quiver again.

It began with his shoulders.

His eyes trembled faintly.

It wasn’t the earlier nervousness.

There was a peculiar fear seeping through.

What brought on that reaction?

“The Holy Being’s words were laced with threats, but you…”

“And I?”

As I crossed my arms and gazed at Cheol Jiseon, he closed his eyes and spoke.

It seemed he couldn’t hold my gaze too long.

And then he said.

“…It felt like you were going to kill me.”

In the bustling restaurant, those rather chilling words slipped out.

Though there were many people passing by, no one would have heard them.

The moment Cheol Jiseon was about to tell me about the encounter with Jang Seonyeon.

It seemed he had already set up an energy barrier.

Upon hearing this, I replayed his words in my head.

‘He thought I’d kill him.’

Why would he think that?

I had been somewhat kind to him.

Cheol Jiseon’s words shocked me.

Not in the sense of how he thought I might kill him but rather.

‘How did he know?’

That I tried to erase Cheol Jiseon along with Jang Seonyeon.

That realization hit me hard.

I thought I had hidden it well.

But how did he catch on?

‘How fascinating.’

I thought of him as a dull, pathetic, weak guy.

Yet it seemed he had a lot more in that head of his than I expected.

“Why would you think that? I have no intention of killing you.”

I said with a smirk.

But Cheol Jiseon didn’t look too convinced.

It’s true I hadn’t killed anyone in this life.

But every breath I took didn’t equate to me going around killing someone.

How did he really figure that out?

Was he just not going to answer?

“Sure, fine. Let’s say I did think about killing you.”

“Okay…”

“But, buddy.”

I moved a bit, adjusting my sitting position.

“If I really intended to kill you, do you think I wouldn’t kill you just because you’re speaking up now?”

“…”

“You think that wouldn’t happen, huh?”

Cheol Jiseon was a person of great potential, but that also carried risks.

His martial arts surpassed the norm, so dealing with him would be tricky.

For now, I also needed his abilities, so it made sense to have him on my side.

However, putting him within the target of my ambitions was, in fact, true.

It would make things more convenient moving forward.

“And if I had such thoughts, why wouldn’t I think the same of Jang Seonyeon?”

“…The Holy Being intends to use me to the end.”

“Me, not you?”

“…Yeah.”

“That’s contradictory, then you should be siding with Jang Seonyeon. It would increase your chances of survival.”

If he was planning to use me to the end, it would be better to stick close to Jang Seonyeon.

Why come to me if he thought I might kill him?

As I asked with a grin, Cheol Jiseon clutched his trembling hands and said.

“You’ll find it meaningless once you defeat the Holy Being.”

“Dude, why do you keep saying I’ll kill you? It’s scary.”

I hadn’t expected Cheol Jiseon to react this way.

I figured he was foolish, but why is he so astute?

‘Maybe it’s because I compared him to Jiegal Hyeok.’

From comparing him to the head of the Demonic Sect.

He wasn’t as foolish as I had thought.

This had suddenly gotten more troublesome.

I hadn’t anticipated this reaction from Cheol Jiseon.

What he was saying was that he believed I would defeat Jang Seonyeon and, sensing the potential of me killing him, wanted to side with me instead.

“Why would I need to accept that?”

“Because I have value.”

“You think too highly of yourself.”

He did possess value.

The real issue was how to utilize that.

Gazing at Cheol Jiseon, I suddenly asked something different.

With this, I felt like I could see how he might respond to different scenarios.

“There’s something I don’t get.”

“…What is it?”

“Jang Seonyeon asked you to help her kill me.”

The fact that Jang Seonyeon asked Cheol Jiseon for help meant that she likely felt.

“How could you help her?”

If he helps her, it would mean Jang Seonyeon could easily kill me.

That meant Cheol Jiseon’s strength was at a certain level.

“Not that she asked me to outright kill you…”

As I said this, Cheol Jiseon appeared flustered, changing his words, but it didn’t seem entirely different.

If it were Jang Seonyeon’s nature, that would be exactly what she would want.

I knew what Cheol Jiseon’s abilities were.

I had experienced them firsthand.

I also had seen them from afar.

“So, do you have that level of power?”

“Uhh…”

“What does that even mean?”

Knowing, I pressed further.

By now, I wondered if Cheol Jiseon would even disclose that info to me.

And if he did tell me about it, what would I do then?

I wouldn’t know until I heard it.

“That’s…”

His fidgeting fingers were annoying.

I had no clue what he was going to do with those fingers, so I kept observing them.

Cheol Jiseon pondered for some time.

But at this point, I felt that I could afford to wait.

The value of this silence was quite significant.

As I continued to wait, Cheol Jiseon finally clenched his trembling fists and spoke to me.

“…I can open the Demonic Gate.”

The answer I had been eagerly anticipating.

 

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